Single Molecule Science (SMS) has emerged from developing, using and combining technologies such as super-resolution microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and optical and magnetic tweezers, alongside sophisticated computational and modelling techniques. This comprehensive, edited volume brings together authoritative overviews of these methods from a biological perspective, and highlights how they can be used to observe and track individual molecules and monitor molecular interactions in living cells. Pioneers in this fast-moving field cover topics such as single molecule optical maps, nanomachines, and protein folding and dynamics. A particular emphasis is also given to mapping DNA molecules for diagnostic purposes, and the study of gene expression. With numerous illustrations, this book reveals how SMS has presented us with a new way of understanding life processes. A must-have for researchers and graduate students, as well as those working in industry, primarily in the areas of biophysics, biological imaging, genomics and structural biology.

'Single-molecule experiments have revolutionized our approaches to biophysics and biochemistry at molecular scales. Only a handful of reference textbooks serves the ever-expanding community of practitioners, beginners, and curious amateurs of single-molecule techniques. This volume is poised to become a new single-molecule reference work, to be readily at hand in any bioscience laboratory, to be read and understood by any scientist practicing, or simply interested, in the new world of experiments, reasoning, and statistical analysis opened up by single-molecule science.'

Michel A. G. J. Orrit - Professor of Spectroscopy of Molecules in Condensed Matter, Leiden University, The Netherlands

'An excellent collection of cutting-edge reports related to single-molecule spectrometry and imaging that consists of widespread contents from basic to application; both students [and] experts will find an extended application of the technologies to biological and clinical research.'

Akira Watanabe - Assistant Professor of Life Science Frontiers, Kyoto University, Japan

'Gives an overview of the applications of single-molecule techniques in the biological sciences. It addresses topics as diverse as super-resolution microscopy (far beyond the Abbe limit) and the study of protein mechanics without ensemble averaging, and, due to its compact size, is informative reading for students and experts alike.'

Lothar Kador - Professor of Physics, University of Bayreuth, Germany

'You will learn about the birth of detection of individual biomolecules, associated state-of-the-art technologies, cutting-edge research, and potential medical applications, all from a single-molecule point of view that will inform your new biological thoughts and insights.'

Katsuyuki Shiroguchi - Principal Investigator, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Japan

'This is a thorough introduction to single-molecule techniques and their applications … Recommended.'

M. S. Kainz Source: Choice